"Carrion Hill will definitely be his... his burial ground," Iozef concludes as a matter of factly. "Such a fool."

"Continue the fight, Mr. Tessar, I am sure you're doing well! Although, to be honest, it's hard to tell from this far away." He squints to see if he's able to tell how well the herbalist truly is doing. "Can any of you make out how he is faring?"

"A little help would be nice! Its not as if I am an expert in wrestiling lunatics!" Valiard says as Crove struggles free, pushing Valiard back long enough to get access to the door.

And I am? Mireza questions in his head, a quizzical lift of an eyebrow implied if not visible. Sounds like a job for the Crow. Crow! she whispers sharply into everyone's minds. Get down here and help the apothecary.

Even if you're still nauseated, you can perform a single move action every round; might as well move combatward so you're ready to launch when able.

"I believe Madam Mireza demands your assistance, Mr. Vachkov. It appears Mr. Tessar is not faring as well as I would have thought. You'd best hurry, she'll 'mind demand' at you again. I just know it." He looks at him with an, 'I'm just warning you is all,' expression.

Windle attempts to get to a better position to take a shot. He's got Precise Shot, so firing into melee isn't an issue. It's getting to where Valiard isn't covering him any more.

Sorry, I can't update the map, but Crove is at the end of the corridor, with Valiard in front of him. It's impossible to avoid cover penalties. Let me know if you prefer firimg or trying to get closer.

Valiard puts a hand on the Keeper as he's about to open the door, while Grigor and Windle stand right behind him. "Noooooooo... You don't understand! You're making a mistake!"

At this moment, the vibration rises and you feel your bones rattle. The thin line between this world and the stars, between sanity and madness seem to blur as the colours and odours of the room seem to saturate, while sounds get more distant.

Crove feels his arm bent back and rotates his body and manages to break Valiard's grip. He grabs the handle and pushes the door opened, revealing the passageway leading right to the second locked door.

All of you are up.

This was a ghost post that didn't show up in-thread for me. Reposting to make sure everyone sees it.

Apothecary, Mireza obediently messages, the Old Priest wants you to get down so he can shoot. Not knowing what else to do, she gets out her crossbow and loads a bolt into it, in case she finds something to shoot at.

Crove feels his arm bent back and rotates his body and manages to break Valiard's grip. He grabs the handle and pushes the door opened, revealing the passageway leading right to the second locked door.

Grigor runs up helps on Valiards attempt... by attempting a complicated lock on the cultists limbs

As soon as we get you all secure, you're getting six of the best in the goolies.

Dirty trick (looking for entangled result)

1d20 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9

Quote:

Dirty Trick

Source: Advanced Player's Guide.

You can attempt to hinder a foe in melee as a standard action. This maneuver covers any sort of situational attack that imposes a penalty on a foe for a short period of time. Examples include kicking sand into an opponent’s face to blind him for 1 round, pulling down an enemy’s pants to halve his speed, or hitting a foe in a sensitive spot to make him sickened for a round. The GM is the arbiter of what can be accomplished with this maneuver, but it cannot be used to impose a permanent penalty, and the results can be undone if the target spends a move action. If you do not have the Improved Dirty Trick feat or a similar ability, attempting a dirty trick provokes an attack of opportunity from the target of your maneuver.

If your attack is successful, the target takes a penalty. The penalty is limited to one of the following conditions:

blinded, dazzled, deafened, entangled, shaken, or sickened.

This condition lasts for 1 round. For every 5 by which your attack exceeds your opponent’s CMD, the penalty lasts 1 additional round. This penalty can usually be removed if the target spends a move action. If you possess the Greater Dirty Trick feat, the penalty lasts for 1d4 rounds, plus 1 round for every 5 by which your attack exceeds your opponent’s CMD. In addition, removing the condition requires the target to spend a standard action.

And Grigors series of great rolls continues... I had thought of Aid Another - would have needed a '2' but I thought 'I am due for a decent roll...'. Alas, the dice gods are spiteful

Crove is kept in a lock by Valiard, unable to move. He seems to relax and starts to sob softly.

Sense Motive

Windle opens his mind to alternate flows of knowledge, concentrating on the thoughts of the old man in front of him.

Mireza:

From her position, Mireza sees colored lights, hues of red, yellow and purple, flash as though scanning, from underneath the double doors to her right. (BC-0) Her ears pop slightly as the ground rumbles again.

It's here, Mireza messages breathlessly. It will come for him ... and you are between it and its spoil. Apothecary, I wanted.... She retreats back across the room toward Iozef, pressing herself into the shelter of the corner and dips her hand into a pocket of her scarf, tossing a pinch of glittery powder into her face. "Gweld y anweledig."

Hearing Grigor speak of taking Crove back to prison, "As Madam Mireza has mentioned, gentlemen, the 'thing' is here. Mr. Vachkov, no matter where we take Mr. Crove, this thing will follow. And there is no place it won't be able to find him. And then it will kill him because it needs to. We need to kill him first. If we do not, then this thing will just grow in power and destroy us all. As in everyone. Mr. Crove has brought his death upon himself, one way or another. I tell you now, he has NO power over this thing. NONE. No matter what he claims. Mr. Thetra knows this as well as I. I suggest we act quickly, gentlemen... we've little time." He relates to the others, his tone far more serious than what's typical of himself as he keeps his eyes focused on the door.

Its here?! Lovely...here I am again, tangling with a mage...ah well, they all die the same...and the quicker that I end this one, the quicker I can run...

Grapple 1d20 + 4 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 4 + 5 = 19

Once you are grappling an opponent, a successful check allows you to continue grappling the foe, and also allows you to perform one of the following actions (as part of the standard action spent to maintain the grapple). Damage: You can inflict damage to your target equal to your unarmed strike, a natural attack, or an attack made with armor spikes or a light or one-handed weapon.

With the ease of long practice, Valiard flicks his wrist, dropping his dagger out of his wrist sheath and into his palm.

Grigor, Windle and Valiard
Behind you, in the great room, you hear a loud crashing sound, as though something splintered in a thousand pieces.

Crove jerks suddenly and yells in a mad laughter: "YOG SOT-" his words are cut short by Valiard as his blades slips under his apron. He goes suddenly limp.

Mireza and Iozef
The doors at the end of the hall burst with a loud crashing sound. As the dust settles, you can see an operating room behind. It seems empty, but disruptions in the flow of dust betray an invisible presence...

All
As Crove exhales his last, your mind gets overwhelmed by a great emotion of anger that washes away as quickly as it rose in you.
Very lethal fight... Please review your sheets to make sure you use the resources you have to their fullest.

Mireza:

Thanks to your incantation, you can see beyond the mundane. It seems a curse as you lay eyes on the madness that is the spawn of Yog Sothoth, watching its writhing mass fluctuates in the darkness of the damp cellar, as it seems to blur the lines of reality. You can discern cunning eyes filled with a simple taste for destruction, snaking tentacles too numerous, lined with eyes and fanged mouths. The whole of its mass moves past the doors, eyes darting for souls to drink.

Btw, Mireza moved to a9 last round before casting her spell, and you didn't move her on the map. No need to redo the map now, but she'll be starting from a9 -- and Windle probably means to be in d10 rather than next to Mireza.

Mireza wrote:

It's here, Mireza messages breathlessly. It will come for him ... and you are between it and its spoil. Apothecary, I wanted.... She retreats back across the room toward Iozef, pressing herself into the shelter of the corner and dips her hand into a pocket of her scarf, tossing a pinch of glittery powder into her face. "Gweld y anweledig."

Move to a9; cast see invisibility, just in case

Deimus wrote:

Let me get this straigth: You [i]want to be within 25 feet of it?!? ;-p

Perhaps more that if it gets within 25 feet of him, at least he'll be able to see it. ;)

We DON'T want to run?!. I a CoC game we'd be lobbing dynamite at the direction it was coming from while we loaded up our double barrelled and prepared to run... mind you, in CoC at least one of us would be close to being bats**t insane by now too. I take it none of us can see it?

This ancient blade here has the best chance of hurting the creature... but I need to discern the beasts weaknesses... if any. I have an... incantation that would help.

Want to cast a spell - know enemy but if its not visible then I am not sure if that or the dust of appearance is my best bet

Until it gets within 25 feet of Iozef, only Mireza can see it. Sadly, she has no useful Knowledge rolls. Windle, you were given a scroll of see invisibility way back on page 2. Use 'em if you got 'em, boys; there's no tomorrow.

Mireza stares, fascinated, into the empty air between the broken doors. "So many mouths...," she breathes. "There's the madness in the very walls you were looking for, Crow. It's angry we took the asylum keeper ... but we'll do. Like the Crows in Slipper Market. A canvas for it to paint death on. Glaw o brogaod," she begins to chant, fingering a red scarf, summoning less mind-bending creatures into the basement.

Round 1: The Heroes of Carrion Hill"Ah. Apparently it is here. Gentlemen! Our 'company' has arrived." Iozef removes a scroll from his pack and begins reading.

Windle casts a divination spell on himself and moves up next to Mireza, shifting his judgment. I pray we won't end up thinking Crove got the better of this....Windle, you can read the spoiler for Mireza above.

"Well that takes care of...OH @#$*!", Valiard says, hearing the enormous crash from the hallway doors.
I need some shadows, someplace to hide! Anything. Stop. Breathe, panic isn't going to help. Valiard thinks, scanning the hallway quickly. Then his eyes track across Crove's cooling corpse.
I wonder if this idiot had something of value that he was planning to use...
Valiard drops to the floor next to the corpse and starts rifling, looking for anything that he can use.

Windle glances back at Valiard and Grigor. "Crove had what looked like four potions on his belt."

Valiard finds four potions in the man’s leather apron. It’s hard to tell what they are for though...

”This ancient blade here has the best chance of hurting the creature... but I need to discern the beasts weaknesses... if any. I have an... incantation that would help.” says Grigor as he moves to the room

Mireza stares, fascinated, into the empty air between the broken doors. "So many mouths...," she breathes. "There's the madness in the very walls you were looking for, Crow. It's angry we took the asylum keeper ... but we'll do. Like the Crows in Slipper Market. A canvas for it to paint death on. Glaw o brogaod," she begins to chant, fingering a red scarf, summoning less mind-bending creatures into the basement.

Round 1: The Spawn of Yog-Sothoth
You hear the floor boom as the creature stumps forward in a mad rush. As it pierces the threshold of Iozef spell, it suddenly appears as though unveiled, its writhing mass fluctuating in the darkness of the damp cellar, as it blurs the lines of reality. You can discern cunning eyes filled with a simple taste for destruction, snaking tentacles too numerous, lined with eyes and fanged mouths. The whole of its mass moves past the doors, eyes darting for souls to drink... Spawn of Yog-Sothoth

You folks don't forget about Bless(+1 to hit and +1 vs. fear) that I cast earlier. It will last 5 minutes total. Not sure how much time is actually left. I figure somewhere around the 3 to 4 minute mark.

Seeing the massive beast before them, Iozef is taken aback by the monstrosity. "Oh my... Pharasma's blessing upon us all. We are surely going to need it." His holy symbol firmly in hand, Iozef calls forth healing to all who need it.